


the only exception

by paintedviolet



Category: Pitch Perfect (Movies)
Genre: Beca and Chloe are living together, Established Relationship, F/F, Fluff, It's the unicorns and rainbows and a cappella nerds in love sort of fluff, Post-PP2, SO MUCH FLUFF, bechloe - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-04
Updated: 2015-08-04
Packaged: 2018-04-12 23:41:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,256
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4499271
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/paintedviolet/pseuds/paintedviolet
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Chloe has two all-time favourite songs. They aren’t from the Dixie Chicks, they aren’t hidden gems from her extensive collection of music. No, while Chloe loves anything and everything to do with music, her favourite songs aren’t fully to do with how they sound. They’re her favourite songs because of the memories she’s got attached to them.<br/>And – of course – those memories involve Beca.</p>
            </blockquote>





	the only exception

**Author's Note:**

> The fluff is intense in this one, guys.  
> This came about thanks to a lovely little song called The Only Exception by Paramore, which I listened to recently and - because I am so in love with Bechloe - it immediately struck me as something Beca would sing in her own time. This is also my first work for the Pitch Perfect fandom, so I hope you all enjoy it! c:

Chloe has two all-time favourite songs. They aren’t from the Dixie Chicks, they aren’t hidden gems from her extensive collection of music. No, while Chloe loves anything and everything to do with music, her favourite songs aren’t fully to do with how they sound. They’re her favourite songs because of the memories she’s got attached to them.

And – of course – those memories involve Beca.

Her first favourite song is something precious in a light-hearted way; whenever she and Beca hear it, her girlfriend tends to go red at the memory and Chloe always begs Beca to sing it with her. Sometimes it’s just on the radio, or it comes up on Chloe’s iPod. But every time, it gets the same reaction. It’s a special song. It’s a damn good lady jam, too.

She’s managed to get Beca to sing it with her a few times, but not always. And when they do, they sound as awesome as they did that very first time, in the shower. When Chloe heard that _incredible_ voice floating through the air and landing delicately in Chloe’s ears, it caused her to shiver with pure delight. There was something so outstanding about the girl’s voice, something Chloe could definitely not ignore. And, yeah, maybe it wasn’t the most polite thing to barge into someone’s shower cubicle and demand them to sing for her – but she couldn’t deny herself this opportunity. Not when the Bellas were in such desperate need of help. Not when Chloe’s special gift was to discover new talent better than a sniffer dog. Not when that voice – _that voice_ – coming from that shower cubicle made the ginger forget about everything else, even Tom. To hell with personal space; she needed to hear more of this voice like she needed to breathe.

When she and the girl who’d called a cappella lame (oh, _please_ ) harmonised perfectly together in that shower, both stark naked and caught up in the brilliant melodies of David Guetta’s song, things just clicked. Her signature Chloe beam she shot Beca’s way became even wider, even happier from then on, and in her eyes sparkled a new light.

That light hasn’t gone away. In fact, it’s just got brighter. Sure, there were times when she despaired (temporarily losing Beca in their first year of knowing each other and being hopelessly in love for four years before the tiny brunette actually realised tends to have that effect), but when they finally resolved the romantic tension between the two of them and finally kissed after Worlds, she knew it was all worth it. And she knows it now; she carries it with her every day. It’s there with her when she wakes up next to the dead-to-the-world DJ, it’s there in her smile when she looks at the unruly but surprisingly musically adept class at her school, it’s there with her when she tiptoes up the stairs to surprise her girlfriend when she arrives home in their flat. It captured her heart three years ago and she’s never let it go since.

Often, the ginger dwells on how crazy it is that just one song – just one, fantastically put together song – brought Chloe to the love of her life. Because of _Titanium_ , she’s got the life she never thought she would have. It’s the life she’s wanted ever since the DJ nervously clutched at Chloe’s sides (and rambled about how this was probably a huge mistake but they’d just won Worlds and Beca felt brave) and brought the taller woman’s face down to meet hers. It’s the life she’s wanted ever since she sang that song with her. And now she’s living with her girlfriend, teaching music at a high school in the heart of LA, while being able to tell her co-workers about how Beca’s just secured a partnership with an up-and-coming singer, or is DJing at a venue that night (and do they want to come see her?) or is planning to make an album with their gang of Bellas.

All because of one song. It’s a special song.

Her other favourite song is an unexpected one. It’s not a memory like the one she and Beca have associated with _Titanium_ ; that happened because of Chloe’s dogged determination to get that girl to audition for the Bellas. This one is something else entirely. This one is… personal.

When the teacher comes home from work, Beca is usually in, too. The music producer is often working on something from her latest album, or is compiling a mix for a set. Other times, she’s given up for the day and is just chilling, watching Grey’s Anatomy or one of the (very) few shows Beca actually likes to watch. Chloe’s never sure what she’s doing, but she tries to sneak up on Beca most days – because, honestly? The brunette is just so adorable when she gets scared. Chloe can never help but giggle at her girlfriend’s fright and give her a loving kiss on the cheek. (Sometimes Beca pretends to be grumpy, but a few wide puppy stares or a wink soon make her melt. It’s cute how easy it is to get her to bend to Chloe’s will.)

But one time, two months into moving in together in LA, Beca wasn’t mixing, or curled up on the sofa watching Grey’s Anatomy. This time, she had just finished in the shower by the time Chloe tiptoed in, LA traffic making her even later than usual. The teacher had thought she’d be occupied, and was planning to surprise her girlfriend again. Beca didn’t hear her as she closed the door and slipped her heels off. She didn’t hear her as she padded through the rooms. She didn’t know Chloe was there, freezing when she heard the music producer sing. Of course, she’d be in her own head.

Beca Mitchell is not one to admit that she likes _The Only Exception_ – or, not easily. She’ll roll her eyes and snort and say something about how cheesy it is, about how Paramore are only ever okay-ish to her. She’ll say it’s a song that Chloe just adores (because, let’s face it, the ginger is a sucker for cute lyrics and songs with strummed guitars that scream the romance of it all); that in itself shows why she’s not a fan of the song.

But that afternoon, just as the sun was starting to set outside their flat, Beca was walking around the bedroom, finding a plaid shirt and some jeans, and singing the lyrics word for word.

Chloe loves how Hayley Williams sounds in that song. She’s got a great voice for the lyrics she sings. But… Beca’s version is her favourite. And she knows it’s because the DJ relates to it – all of it.

As the teacher watched and listened to her girlfriend, she could tell that Beca was putting her heart and soul into every word. She heard the resentment and the loss Beca felt at the separation of her parents (her relationship with her father was slightly better now, but the music producer still called his new wife “the stepmonster”); she was reminded how Beca felt about rom-coms and love stories and all of those things when the lyrics spoke of that for her. This was Beca, connecting with her past, dwelling on the things that had made her lock herself away and build walls she wanted to be impenetrable.

_When I was younger I saw my daddy cry_

_And curse at the wind._

_He broke his own heart and I watched_

_As he tried to reassemble it._

_And my momma swore_

_That she would never let herself forget._

_And that was the day I promised_

_I’d never sing of love if it does not exist._

Chloe saw those walls from the first moment they met. Beca rebutted any attempts from Chloe and Aubrey to sign up for auditions at the start of their senior year. When Chloe watched the timid freshman shuffle into the auditions and blow away everyone away with her cup song, she swore to become friends with her, to take those walls down and let Beca show the world just how awesome she was. And it was hard, but she did it in the end.

Who cares if it only fully worked for Chloe? Who cares if Beca is still defensive around people she’s never met, and sometimes people she knows? It’s a long, gradual process, but Beca’s walls tumbled down for Chloe through dedication, observation and a refusal to acknowledge personal boundaries.

Chloe allowed herself a small smile at the memories flooding her when she gazed at her girlfriend singing. Her girlfriend who _still_ hadn’t realised that the ginger was watching her with a look of awe written so obviously on her face.

Chloe could hear it all, she could hear Beca fitting herself so perfectly into every line. This song – though the DJ will always deny it, the teacher knows – was so Beca, that it wasn’t surprising to find that her girlfriend wrapped her voice around it so completely. What was surprising, however, was the conviction she put into the chorus, and the last lines.

The teacher forgot how to breathe for a moment – because she knew who this was about. It was as clear to her as it is when Beca tells her explicitly.

This is her girlfriend’s style; she prefers to show her love through actions rather than saying those three words over and over again. She does it by staying up to watch movies with Chloe even if she hates them. She does it by listening to all of the teacher’s stories about work – because, even if she doesn’t like the ginger’s co-workers, she’s still going to listen to Chloe. She does it by instigating hugs before Chloe, and burying her face into her neck before letting go; by not holding back when she needs to get something out of her. She does it by kisses at the most unexpected of times, smiles full of adoration sent her way even when everyone’s watching. She does it by singing a love song she refuses to admit she knows the words to.

_You are the only exception,_

_You are the only exception,_

_You are the only exception,_

_You are the only exception._

_And I’m on my way to believing,_

_Oh, and I’m on my way to believing._

When the last note was projected from the brunette’s mouth, Beca turned to the drawer beside the doorway to fetch some socks. That was when she saw Chloe leaning against the doorway, and froze.

“Jesus, Chlo!” she gasped. “How long have you been there?!”

“Long enough,” the ginger beamed, a little waver in her speech giving away how much love was pouring through her. She felt like she was going to explode if she couldn’t kiss her girlfriend in the next minute or so. “So, _The Only Exception_ , huh? Never put you down as a Paramore girl.”

Of course, Beca turned beetroot red. “How much of that did you hear?” she muttered, hiding her face in her long, dark hair as she fished out some socks.

Chloe couldn’t take it anymore; she moved over to her girlfriend and guided her away from the drawer, before diving in for a hug. She could smell the perfume the DJ put on; it was spicy, aromatic. (It suited her.) Beca wrapped her small arms around Chloe’s waist and the teacher sighed contentedly. “I heard all of it,” she answered truthfully, “and it was beautiful, Becs. It was perfect.”

“Yeah, well.” Chloe could feel the music producer shrug inside her embrace. “Sang from the heart, and all that.” There was a small pause, where the ginger just focused on the feeling of Beca’s warmth on her skin and the pounding of her heart, before Beca spoke again. “Please don’t tell anyone I sang _The Only Exception_. I might never be able to live it down.”

The taller woman let go of her slightly, rearing back so Beca could gaze at her big, blue eyes. “Of course not,” she promised, eyes locked on those deep blue irises that always tugged at something warm deep inside of her. “I get it, I do. It’s personal. For me, too.”

There it was, again – that smile that Beca only saves for Chloe. “Yeah,” was all the music producer managed to say, before leaning in for a kiss.

Chloe could only return it, of course – and poured of all her love, her pride for Beca, her happiness at what they were, into it. When they finished, she leaned forwards so their foreheads touched and whispered, “I love you, Beca.”

“I love you too, Chlo.”

Sometimes the memory drifts to the forefront of Chloe’s mind, no matter what she’s doing. She can have Beca curled up with her while they’re watching movies on a Wednesday night, or be cooking breakfast after a particularly late Sunday morning for the both of them; it can pop up when she’s trying to calm her students down in the midst of the Friday afternoon chaos. She always smiles every time she remembers it, but it’s even better when Beca’s there. Beca can tell when she’s thinking about it; the DJ will look at her beam, and a slow, understanding smile will spread across her face, too. Because she knows.

 _Titanium_ is special; it’s how they first connected. But this favourite song? It’s personal. With this memory, Chloe can’t help but fall a little more in love with Beca each day.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments, kudos and reads are always massively appreciated and I will love you forever if you decide to do any combination of those three!
> 
> If you want to talk at all, hop over to teacupsandbechloe.tumblr.com; my ask box is always open! Or you can message me on @gunbxtch on Twitter!


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